H+J

Madness Begins

 Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight? Well, I have, and he is beautiful. He grins in the Gotham night as his green eyes glisten. He reaches his hand out as he says, "Come on sugar." I never realized the monster that was dormant inside me until he came along. He released the real me, and I became the harlequin to his joker.

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I slipped on my black nylons and navy blue pencil skirt with a plum business top on. Today was my first day of work in two weeks. I had just graduated college and decided to quit my college job as a library assistant, thinking I would find a job quickly. Well, I was wrong. My first day at Arkham Asylum, I was anxious and nervous because of all the stories about these "supervillains." I jumped in my car and started it, immediately turning on the heat. It was the middle of winter in Gotham, and it almost felt like I was in the Arctic.

I pulled up into the parking lot of my local coffeehouse. Of course, they had been recently robbed. Sadly, that doesn't surprise me one bit with the crime rate in Gotham. I ordered my regular coffee with sweet cream. Hopping back into my small red Volkswagen Bug, I drove to Arkham.

As I pulled up to the gate, it began to rain, as if a big rain cloud hovered over Arkham always pouring. I slowly rolled down my window as I pulled up to the small booth. Rain began to drizzle in as he said gruffly, "Hello ma'am, how can I help you?"

"Hi, I'm Dr. Quinzel, the new hire."

"Ok I'll get you a visitor pass." He disappeared for a short second before handing me a small sticker that said 'Visitor' on it. "Here you go Ms. Qonzell."

"It's Quinzel," I corrected him angrily. Nobody could say my last name correctly. Is it even that hard? He opened the gate and I drove through on the asphalt road that quickly became gravel. As I got out of my car I ripped my nylons on my keys, then to make it worse, when I stepped out my foot landed into a puddle. I pulled out my black umbrella and notepads I recently bought. When I looked around, I saw multiple patients roaming around outside. 'How safe.' I thought. My hands began to shake slightly. I was scared of being surrounded by some of Gotham's craziest criminals but the ones roaming around outside were most likely safe but it didn't matter since they paid no attention to me.

I opened the large wood door with metal accents as I walked inside. There were guards and cops all inside, along with some patients being transported and others just roaming. I made eye contact with a tall, black guard walking towards me with some files in his hands.

"Hello, you must be Dr. Quinzel?" Finally someone could pronounce it.

"Y-yes." Stuttering was something that happened very often when I'm in a new environment and it didn't help that there were criminals left and right.

"Good," He handed me the stack of files. "I'm Aaron Cash, one of the many guards here at Arkham. I mostly work the night shifts, but I sometimes work days so you might see me around."

"Thank you Aaron. Could you maybe show me around and help me find the offices?" He nodded his head and guided me, he pointed out that the more dangerous the more locked down a patient was. A big rule here was that they MUST be referred to as patients not prisoners. "Here is your office," He held out his hand showing off the wood door with a small frosted glass window. "Not much, but what else can you expect from an asylum?" I smiled.

"I'll let you get settled in and then we have to take your badge picture." He gave me 15 minutes to set up my computer and figure out my login which came with ease.

As Aaron took me to the photo center to take my picture, I saw more of the Arkham layout. Most of the guards were playing crossword puzzles or watching a game. They seemed to be able to do whatever they wanted. I stood in front of the camera and smiled. "Don't smile and are you always going to wear your hair like that" I touched my tight ballerina bun, which I knew was going to give me a headache, and nodded. He snapped the quick picture. I didn't hate how it came out but I wish I could have smiled. I looked so depressed, but after a while you probably end up like that. If I had taken his advice, maybe I wouldn't be telling this story.

I found the way to my office through the winding halls of Arkham. One small feat at a time. As I sat down, I grew an uneasy feeling. Something just wasn't right. I tried shaking it off but I couldn't, so I just ignored it. I looked through my files. I had three patients: Ventriloquist, Killer Croc, it gave me anxiety just reading his file, and Pamela Isley, aka Poison Ivy. She was my favorite out of them all. According to her file, she had a special connection with plants and she absolutely was breathtaking. I was going to learn soon she was a key ally.

Sessions didn't begin until tomorrow so I had time to settle in. That night I went home to my small apartment not knowing that it was the one of the last times I'd arrive home at 6 p.m.after him. I ordered take-out and ate leftover ice cream I found in the back of my freezer, cotton candy, my favorite. I sat back and relaxed. The next thing I knew, I had fallen asleep while watching Seinfeld.